Primary Document: Committee on Institutional Cooperation (CIC) Writes to GPO in Support of October ARL Letter

The proposal noted in the ARL statement for the University of Minnesota to support selective depository libraries in Michigan—including CIC members Michigan State University and the University of Michigan—exemplifies the kind of efficiencies that the CIC universities are seeking in any number of research and instructional programs. Our libraries have full confidence in the ability of the University of Minnesota to administer this program, and believe this approach to be more cost-effective than asking another university to bear the burdens of regional status.
Like ARL, we are surprised that GPO has not embraced the University of Minnesota’s well-considered offer to extend its service area. The University of Minnesota runs an exemplary regional program—one that supports not only libraries in Minnesota but those in South Dakota as well. They have expressed a willingness to add the resources needed to extend the reach of their established program to Michigan. We think this is a workable and efficient plan that will continue the flow of government information to the people of Michigan. Without a viable alternative, GPO’s resistance will visit considerable disruption and inconvenience on the people and libraries of Michigan.